He didn''t leave. Instead, he sat down on the living room sofa. As the night deepened outside, he called Serena and asked her to have his daughter sleep over, offering no exnation.


    After hanging up,n stared out the window. The city lights cast his profile in shifting shadows. The dampness from her tears was still on the back of his hand. He took out his phone and sent a message, dispatching his private jet to the Andreessen factory in Drexford to retrieve thetest upgraded model of the Helios chip.


    He had made her a promise, and he intended to keep it.


    ***


    Eleanor woke up at nine-thirty, drenched in a cold sweat. She touched her face and felt the lingering traces of tears at the corners of her eyes. She sighed.


    The dream had felt so real. She dreamt that Mansfield''s vital signs suddenly tlined. The neural interface was ready, but the chip was missing. In the dream, she ripped theb apart, searching everywhere, only to end up frozen in ce as the heart monitor let out one long, shrill tone and the green line on the screen copsed into a dead, unbroken bar.


    Even now, Eleanor could feel a dull ache in her chest from her heart pounding so fiercely. Her nightgown was soaked through, but thankfully, it was just a dream.


    She wiped the moisture from her eyes and got out of bed. Her phone wasn''t nearby, and she remembered she might have left it on the living room sofa.


    As she stepped out of her room, she saw the living room lights were on. *Joslyn must be back,* she thought.


    Eleanor wanted to get a ss of water and see if her daughter was home. But as she reached the middle of the staircase, she was surprised to see someone sitting on the sofa in the light-it wasn.


    He seemed to be working, aptop open on his knees, but he quickly turned his head to look up at the stairs.


    "You''re awake?" he said, closing theptop. His voice sounded especially clear in the quiet of the night. "Joslyn had an emergency and couldn''t make it back. Evelyn is sleeping at my mom''s."


    Eleanor froze and folded her arms across her chest without even thinking about it. She frowned. "What are you doing here?"


    And how did he get in?


    "I''m sorry. Joslyn called you several times, but you didn''t answer. I was worried something might have happened, so I had her give me the code."


    Eleanor instinctively pulled her silk nightgown tighter around herself. "I''m fine. Thank you."


    crossing


    her arms only drew his


    eyes to ces they shouldn''t be.


    Eleanor stood there ufortably for a few seconds before turning and heading briskly back upstairs.


    When she came down again, she had changed into a T-shirt and soft lounge pants.n stood up and walked toward her. "Has the fever gone down?"


    Eleanor felt much more alert, and her thoughts were clearer. The fever was gone, and she felt morefortable facing him.


    "I''m much better."


    "I don''t really have an appetite right now," Eleanor replied. Then, she realized he probably hadn''t eaten either.


    "I''ll order," she said.


    Eleanor, who had been walking toward the water dispenser, stopped dead in her tracks. She turned to


    stare at him in astonishment. A


    private jet? He had used his private


    jet just to get a chip?


    This favor was far beyond what she had expected, leaving her momentarily at a loss


    for words.


    "Thank you. That was very thoughtful of you," Eleanor said, her voice filled with gratitude.